An experimental test of the efficacy of playing in a new violin using mechanical devices

There is a widespread (but not universal) conviction among luthiers and performers of stringed instruments that a new instrument will sound “better” after it has been played for a certain amount of time. It is not uncommon for instruments to be mechanically stimulated to accelerate the process. The goal of the present experiment is to determine whether sustained vibration of previously unplayed violins produces measurable changes in bridge admittance or acoustic radiativity. We used three unplayed sibling violins (same make, model, and year), two of which were excited continuously for twelve weeks using different methods, while the third served as a control. At regular intervals, we measured bridge admittance with a laser vibrometer and radiativity in an anechoic chamber for each violin using the hammer tap method. The mass of each violin was also recorded prior to each measurement to account for fluctuations in moisture content. The resulting frequency response functions were analyzed within specific bands for changes that followed a trend over time or exceeded the standard deviation derived from a set of baseline measurements. Our results do not show any significant changes in either the bridge admittance or radiativity for any of the violins.